After 11 years of building the girls’ basketball program, Student Activities Director Russ Crist has stepped down from the varsity position. Former junior varsity coach Keith Garbart will be taking over the program this winter.

“The way that we looked at this coaching staff situation, Crist was here with us 11 years, and we were disappointed when he told us that he needed to step back. But he put in place a great program with Keith side by side especially the last two years, and it was very easy to talk to him about taking over the program,” Phelan said.

Garbart has been in the program with the current seniors all four years as the junior varsity coach, and they knew he could take on extra responsibility.

“I believe this is the best move for our team. We wanted Coach G as soon as we got the news from Coach Crist, and we were all very happy with the results of choosing a new varsity coach. It will probably take some getting used to; however, G has been a part of our program for so long that it isn’t too much of a change for us,” senior Tara O’Coin said.

Garbart has been coaching various high school sports for the past 20 years. One of his areas of focus is on maintaining a level of respect between the players and all coaches.

“What I have learned the most is that you need to be fair and consistent in how you approach each athlete in order to gain their respect,” Garbart said.

While concentrated on  maintaining a well-respected relationship between the players and the coaches, Garbart is focusing on achieving one main goal: winning games. The team’s motto this season will be “Win Today”.

“By winning the day, we will compete with each other in order to challenge ourselves and push our limits. If we ‘Win Today,’ we can achieve all of our goals,”  Garbart said.

Along with the new head coach, paraprofessional Juliette Givens has taken over the junior varsity position and will be working alongside Garbart this season. Longtime girls’ basketball fan senior Jake Rappaport is eager to see the team with its new coaching staff.

“I’m looking forward to this upcoming season considering the changes in coaching as well as the loss of key seniors, but I’m excited to see what this year’s group is capable of,” Rappaport said.